Amongst the many rodents around the school, one is special. Chubs Maloy has lived in Mr. Albert Marino’s math classroom since August 2017 – well, most of the time anyway. He’s been known to escape his enclosure and disappear for days at a time. “Mr. Ward offered [me] a hamster cage over…

College tuition has consistently risen the past few years. One year of attending a four-year public university can be around $20,000, and can begin to go over that amount when out-of-state tuition is factored in. The average cost of attending a private university gets even higher, being $34,740 a year. Around five years ago the…

Love, Simon is an upcoming film based off the book Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, written by Becky Albertalli. The movie follows Simon Spier (Nick Robinson), a closeted gay 17-year-old high school student, and his experience balancing school, friends, family, a pen pal, and his sexuality. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda is…

Between the paper-thin pages of fashion magazines, stuck on the front page of Pinterest boards, and lining the walls of any makeup store, advertisements feature models with largely uniform makeup looks. These advertisements, with heavily made-up models, push on to the viewer a standard of 21st-century beauty trends. Some of these features – such as…

THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI: Gus Flores-Rascon, Beyond Our Walls Editor Writer and director of In Burgess and Seven Psychopaths brings another dark comedy to viewers, this time with the added dramatic intensity of leading actress Frances McDormand. In a small town, grieving mother Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand) demands justice for her teenage daughter who…

In 2019, it is estimated that there will be 2.77 billion social media users worldwide. The growth of social media in the 21st century has had many positives: people around the world use it to keep in contact with friends and family, as a form of entertainment, or even a news source. With a rapid…

The Class of 2021 has been through their first semester in the turmoil of high school. While ninth grade is stressful with new classes, new rules, and more pressure, ninth grade English teacher Ms. Anni Knox thinks that students are doing well. “They are adjusting quite well, I think the eighth grade team did a…

Snot filled tissues are overflowing the trash cans around the Ann Richards School as one of the United States’ worst outbreaks of the flu since the Bubonic Plague has begun making its way through the hallways. Due to the 2018 flu student attendance is at an all time low for the year and things only…

Looking for things to spend your time doing in Austin? Well, here are 12 free activities you can do with family, friends and pets all around the capital city of Texas. 1)Take your pets to the Barton Springs dog park and you too can go for a dip! With a waterfall and beautiful view, it’s…

Claudia Luong (11) takes a bite out of a cookie while waiting outside the Texas State Capitol. Luong competed in the judicial branch in Youth and Government, specifically district court, the highest level of court a team can participate in. Photo by Becca Alonso.

From left to right: Charlen Puon (10), Xiemena Sifuentes (10), Eleanor Jeansonne (10), Mia Clark (10), and Sierra Walton (12). Students pose for a picture during the second day of Youth and Government State Conference. All of these delegates worked in the media branch of government, which was divided into three sections: broadcast, social media, and print. Photo by Becca Alonso.

Alexis Miller (11) prepares her testimony as a witness before her trial. Photo by Becca Alonso.

Ann Richards students hold hands in prayer Saturday morning, looking upon the portrait of former governor Ann Richards. They were headed into their first round of judicial cases. “I feel like Ann Richards is going to guide us through the day. She’s a leader and she inspires me,” Savannah Wallace (11) said. Photo by Becca Alonso.

Eleanor Bailey (12) speaks during a legislative session Friday morning. This was her first year in Youth and Government and she has already changed her future plan based on the experience. “I’ve always known that I wanted to be a changemaker,” Bailey said. “I want to help as many people as I can. I was thinking medicine, but I’m thinking politics now. You can only cure one person at a time with medicine, and thousands with politics.” Photo by Becca Alonso.

During the worst flu epidemic since 2009 (Wall Street Journal), it’s no surprise the controversial issue of mandatory flu vaccinations surfaced on the Senate floor. The Senate chambers were bustling Friday afternoon at the Capitol as the committee discussed how to efficiently implement a healthy regulation of vaccinations. Photo by Becca Alonso.

The smell of coffee and freshly printed paper wafted through the Renaissance hotel this weekend as 1300 students from all over Texas gathered for the 71st annual YMCA Youth and Government Texas State Conference. 50 students from Ann Richards participated in the event, making for the biggest delegation in the state.

For the month of February, the Polaris Press is producing weekly content approaching the idea of beauty from varying angles. This week, we bring you a photo gallery featuring fellow classmates in images that explore color and makeup. Click on the gallery to get started!

The 2nd annual Intersession has just ended. Intersession is a three-day break from school while actually being at school where you attend a class and do all sorts of fun activities whether it’s at school or around Austin, has just ended. Very similar to last year’s Intersession, it was very fun to learn new things…